I was 16 years old and the only dead song I have heard up to this point was “touch of grey”. It’s important to note that I was into much heavier music at the time. The show started and I remember thinking that they were playing country music, something that I disliked at the time. My friend and I were the only two people sitting down in the entire arena. A couple of heads saw us sitting down and came over to introduce themselves. We made a trade of some local produce we brought for some puffy paper there brought. I can still remember the song that was playing when everything changed. Scarlet/Fire. I have been a fan ever since and have been looking for some type of footage from that show.

I sang a little while and then flew on.

And I'm sure everyone was cringing and up in arms early '88 with the onslaught of: Victim, We Can Run, Little Light, etc. And don't forget late '82-'83: Esau, Throwing, Touch...
Point is, it's unfortunate that despite how supposedly accepting, evolutionary and revolutionary us heads are all supposedly... we are at times judgmental, narrow minded and scared of change.

Above par for '95, and really some fine salvageable moments. Garcia wasn't chronically off the entire show and, again, "90s Dead" is a matter of taste rather than, as many think, an absolutely irrefutable musical decline.
Re the booze, this happens a lot in the South (and probably in other specific geographic regions). I saw two shows in Charlotte and many elsewhere in the South over two decades and it is simply a demographic fact that alcohol plays a significant role in the concert-going scene. Generally not a big deal. Deadheads hold their liquor as well as anything else they've ingested ; it's a polite and generous crowd, whatever the predominant buzz.
Try Tampa if you can't stand this!

Another reviewer wrote: "They were [predominately] young, GD teeny boppers drinking lots of alcohol. They seemed to be more interested being part of a scene than actually enjoying the GD experience."

I would venture to say that alcohol was always a part of the Grateful Dead experience-for some. One of the biggest drawbacks of the later shows was the sense of entitlement and begrudging attitudes of the older folks. Tapers that bitched and moaned if you dare cheered the band between songs...etc.etc. There was a lot of BS happening at the end and it kinda always was. If Jerry forgetting some lyrics bummed you out that much why not just quit going to shows? If drunk kids didn't try and continually "be part of the scene" there would be no scene. The duty of the elder is to teach, not admonish. Too many older heads lost sight of what was important. They are as much to blame for the scene fading as it was the younger kids with no sense. But as Bobby sang to the older folks dismay:"You don't have to say a word, you got dick to say" lol

Jerry missing the words all over the place [Loser for one], then nailing the leads on Fire on the Mountain. A great So Many Roads [with the occasional lyric mishap] compared to the last one from Chicago. But the biggest "issue" with this show? Cheesy Answers, Corrina, and Mathilda. To this day I cringe when Further plays either of the first two...... At the end of the day, a typical late '93 to early '95 outing, i.e. nothing as abysmal as the summer of '95 but still not the band I loved in the 70's and 80's. Still think those outdoor shows killed him.... To be smacked out, having heart issues, carrying all that weight, and standing out in the summer sun..... A lesser man would have thrown in the towel afte Highgate.... as Bill Graham said in his introduction to one of the November '66 shows, "The Charles Atlas of the pyschedelic set, Jerry Garcia".....

If I were rating on lyrical "percentage".... a 2 star affair
Song choice a 3 star affair [yes, those 3 tunes killed a show with Unbroken, So Many Roads, Scarlet/Fire, and Days Between]
Playing.... 3 stars. A 5 for Fire on the Mountain carrying the day with a bunch of 2's, 3's, and 4's the rest of the way.

Can't give the overall show a rating b/c I wasn't there to soak in the ambiance :)

Its a good show for '95. Don't begrudge those of us that were there. I saw 5 shows in 95 and this was the one that jerry was most awake at.

I once was blind but now I see :- those that critique and are negative toward the band have never been to the other dimension. The Grateful Dead were awesome every time they played in all era's and it just got better over time.............................................!

I was at this show. I don't remember the music. I remember the crowd inside and outside of the coliseum. They were predominately young, GD teeny boppers drinking lots of alcohol. They seemed to be more interested being part of a scene than actually enjoying the GD experience.

This is what changed most over the years post 1983-4. Young alcohol-infused crowds waiting for the band transform them. It was an impossible task for a tired, jaded, road worn group of middle-aged rock and rollers.

Listening to the show now, it's very enjoyable within the context of the 1990's GD. It stands the test of time even with sloppy lead guitar and raspy voice of Jerry.

Long live the GD. RIP Jerry!

Dopo 50 anni spesi ad aspettare di sentire un po di musica BELLA e BUONA , (compresa l'antica musica dei CELTICI , con la musica popolare irlandese , cinese , araba , cubana , salsa , colombiana , ecc. ) ; con attese anche di piu di 3/4 ore , con moltissime notti passate a dormire con la radiolina portatile sotto l'orecchio oppure con l'auricolare nell'orecchio , dopo piu di 5 concerti , dopo piu di 1.500 LP , dopo aver ascoltato tutte le nove sinfonie di BEETHOVEN ( ho l'LP a casa ) , dopo aver ascoltato : G. VERDI , WAGNER , MALHER , CHAIKOSKY , HEYDN , CHOPIN , ROSSINI , PUCCINI , LEONCAVALLO , LED ZEPPELIN , DEEP PURPLE , TEN YEARS AFTER , QUICK SILVER MESSENGER SERVICE , ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND , WOODSTOK '69 , ISLE OF MAN '70 , WATHER REPORT , GENTLE GIANT , YES , GENESIS , IRON BUTTERFY , RARE HEART , GOLDEN HERRING , BEATLES , ROLLING STONES , Ecc. , Ecc. , ecc. , ecc . , é OBLIGATORIO FARE una TOP-TEN assoluta , considerando tutti i generi compresi : I° in assoluto JERRY GARCIA , II° , l'organista dei GRATEFUL DEAD , III° il bassista dei grateful dead , IV° beethoven , V° l'organista dei GENESIS , PUCCINI , VERDI , WAGNER , ROSSINI , ecc . ULTIMO IN ASSOLUTO FRANK ZAPPA . Effettivamente il '95 é stato l'APICE dei GRATEFUL DEAD ; ed io ne avevo sentiti pochi brani dei GD , prima del 2011 . Non so suonare nessun strumento musicale , anche mi piacerebbe saper suonare , il basso , il piano , la chitarra , ecc. Debbo dire che se sapessi suonare un strumento musicale , mi piacerebbe suonarlo solo con la musicalità ed armonia di JERRY GARCIA . Sono cresciuto con la musica popolare SALENTINA (LECCE) ( ITALIA ) cioé : la PIZZICA-PIZZICA , e metto JERRY GARCIA il miglior musicista di ''pizzica.pizzica'' . PACE all'ANIMA SUA . Firmato MARIO TORSELLO , Alessano (LECCE) ITALIA , anni 59 .

I was at this show. It had been five years since I had done any more than one night, so on a whim I accepted a ride to Charlotte with an option for Atlanta, Memphis, Birmingham, and Tampa. I skipped off with $90 and two tickets, one for each night at the Pyramid.
As is wont to occur on tour, a little ingenuity and energy helped parlay that $90 and two tickets into 7 shows, lots of beer, enough food (not high on the list of priorities) to survive, a couple bags of grass, one night in a hotel (Birmingham, Alabama), and plenty of other goodies that any Deadhead could figure out without too much thought.
This show was among the seven I got in to. I remember feeling a touch of that old feeling early on, the "F'n YEAH all RIGHT swweeet- I'm standing in A GRATEFUL DEAD CONCERT!!!".
At that point in my life, even after being there 50 or so times in the 80's, a Grateful Dead concert was still the only place on earth where I could honestly say to myself that there was NO PLACE IN THE WORLD!!!! where I would rather be right now!!
After that feeling faded away, what was left was a musical experience that would be called mediocre if I felt really nostalgic and generous. Truth be told, the show was awful. It left me feeling so sad at what I had lost.
I had lost the indescribable ecstasy the band had bestowed upon me so effortlessly those last 50 or so nights where I had shared the same room with those 6 or so men.
In its place was a bushel of feelings associated with loss. Loss of a loved one, loss of tangible things, just LOSS.
SO, so sad.
If you want to feel sad, listen to this show in the context of what we used to have from this group. I guess without perspective, a totally objective critique might garner two stars for this show, but in terms of what we lost, this show warrants zero stars.
Bruce tried, to no avail. This one was doomed from the start. Really good drugs would likely only serve to magnify the futility of this band on this night.
I know its harsh, and honestly, it is hard to type these words, but someone needs to tell it like it is.
Unless you were there and would like to relive it, there is absolutely no reason to toss away a minute of your life listening to this show.
Sorry fellas. I recommend trying an earlier era that might interest you.

You have to be kidding Brzo, or maybe it's Bozo?? If this was the best of '95 than what was the worst? I saw Unbroken Chain at my last show and almost left since it was so bad. Jerry couldn't play a solo over the 5/4 section to save his life. And the new songs like Corrina, Easy Answewrs and Wave to the Wind (just to name a few) all were pretty bad. I was always amazed that they kept playing those tunes. Like they were going to all of a sudden be great...not.

wow easy answers corrina matilda all in the same show. absolutely horrible.

It was actually over (at least for me) Winter '94. The only thing that didn't make '95 a total bust was the debut of Unbroken chain. I've been on the bus since 01/05/79 I never got off. The boys should have packed in sooner. We have tapes, the vault & memories, GBTGD.

I think this series were shows 9,10 and 11 for me. Pretty young in my Dead career (embarrassedly I admit I crooned out the wrong lyrics during He's Gone); the vibe out in the lot was electric. Frat guys pumping Dead out of the back of their hummers decked with studio grade speakers, lots of new Heads like myself everywhere, cops announcing "6 up" as they drove by, Scramble bus.
The vibe in the show was wayy different. Bruce brought a sweet surprise but the series had a gloomy cloud over it. I remember thinking Jerry was on his last leg.
Anyhow, just my memories. Sorry to ramble. Enjoy, this embodies the vibe (good and bad) of 95.

Funny reading the reviews of the heads who attended this show. This is unlistenable garbage!

Poor Jer has completely lost it by this time.

Pity that the band didnt pack it in sooner!

Unbelievable this was only the second live playing of the Chain.......


You can really hear the struggle in Jerry's voice during this So Many Roads.....This soundboard is one of the best in terms of illustrating his quick deteriotation during the Spring of 95..........

Good recording, but the show is like Evil Knievel stopping at the end of the ramp. Easy Answers, following the 1st half, makes me want crawl back in the womb. The band left no easy answers for that one. However, they did top it while in mid flight with Corina after Fire. That made me want to crawl under a blanket with my binky. This very well may have been the best they had to offer that year. Unbroken Chain was good for all the breaks in the rhythm of the show.

..but phil and bruce kinda make up for it. phils vocals are pretty proud on unbroken chain. fire is actually okay...but everything else kind of sucks and the sound is not very good. too bad; i thought so many roads was a good tune but it blows here (although the pathos in jerry's voice makes it listenable) but whatever, it's '95.

worth it for the chain; too bad the sound wasn't better. too bad they didn't get around too that song when phil started singing again in the '80s.

Was at all 3 here, hangin' up in 'philzone' and enjoyed this show as much as any other 50 or so shows I saw in '94-'95. I missed the Philly Rex benefit show, so this more than made up for that. Everyone got into this show so it's was heard by 'all', unlike Philly.

Sounds as good today as it did in person!!

i cant download this show please tell me how its my only dead show that i got into i need this show for my collection please help danks

Second set the band is really in the pocket, I'd have to say the scarlet>fire is the best rendition as far as the 90s are concerned. bruce is hoppin. hes got lots of energy that really comes out in fire on the mountain. it seems like he is over compensating for the fact that jerry is in horrible shape.

I definitely would say that this is the best show in '95. With Bruce on the grand, it can't be any less.
I was there and it was the most energetic show that I was fortunate to see. Jerry was great this night. Maybe he forgot some lyrics, but his playing was tight. The whole band was in "show" form. Obviously, when Bruce is on the grand and into the show, you definitley need to pick up your game. That's exactly what the boys did! There are arrows after every song in the second set. If you saw the next night(not to much energy), it's obvious they laid it all out with Bruce. Great Show! Best of '95 maybe even '94.

Let's see here..."Easy Answers", "Corina", "Mathilda"....sheesh! As if that's not bad enough, the playing here is totally by the numbers, no attempt at creativity anywhere. The long downhill slide continues unabated.

I don't even know why I checked this show out, but it's damn good. Oh yeah...Unbroken Chain. It's as good a live version as I've heard, but the whole show has alot of energy, probably due in part to Bruce Hornsby. El Paso has a nice feel to it, and Scarlet>Fire never lets up. Not a fan of this late period, but this is an excellent show with good sound.

me and my friend drove down from ny-
both the charlotte shows were a blast, beautiful days, beautiful people, frickin krispy kreme doughnuts everywhere.
scarlet>fire takes it

SEE 1992,2,21 'getting them all!---- Pause friendly cassette streamer, having winter fun, thankx archive.org / Grateful Dead, this is the sound track of my life!!!!

I was fortunate enough to attend this show from the luxury sky box of one of the nation's largest banking institutions. Had the chairman of the board of that bank entered the sky box that evening banking might be done in an entirely different fashion. Undisirregardless (I made that word up for all those who don't know that "irregardless" is not a word), the boys were on that evening. The first set was mediocre and short (45 minutes) with no real highlights. There were, however, decent versions of Half Step, Cold Rain and Snow, Easy Answers, and a So Many Roads closer. The So Many Roads gave hints of things to come. Much like the second set itself, this version has some minor flaws but is actually quite inspired.
The second set opened and one could feel confusion, and then recognition overtake the Coliseum. Unbroken Chain had only JUST been broken out in Philly a few days before. And here it was in all it's glory. Phil's vocals are flawless. The jam section only hints at what could have been had they played this in the 70's or had Jerry cleaned up his act and lived a few more decades. Regardless, this is THE Unbroken Chain of all the live versions. I've heard them all and know of what I speak. The crowd was deliriously happy after they finished Unbroken Chain and they chose to follow it with a SCORCHING/RIPPING/SHREDDING Scarlet/Fire that brought the entire crowd back up to it's feet in a hurry. Yes, yes... Jerry blows some vocals. It's not the tape... it's the show... BUT WHO CARES?!?! Jerry plays as if every note is a fight for his life and he is winning the battle... intense, passionate, confident, one feels as if he could have gone on forever. This man is possessed! Bobby's rythm shreiks and fills are truly outstanding on Fire, in particular. Hornsby seems to drive the band. Ya just gotta own this in order to truly understand. Corrina is haunting and one of the best versions I've ever heard. Mathilda is the only song of the set that I don't really care for but it serves it's purpose as a great lead into the drums. And let me not forget to mention the piano/drums trio-ette (is that a word) leading into the drums. It rocks! Even the Space portion of this set is do-able. And as good as the first 4 songs of this set were, The Days Between which follows Space is a melancholy thing of beauty. Jerry's vocals are soulful and his playing inspired, thus turning a slow song into something beautiful and inspiring. Good Lovin to close the set is about as inspiring as most Bobby songs to end concerts... short and sweet, nothing spectacular, but usually nothing horrible either. The Weight encore was a nice, different, unususal choice.
OK kids... this is THE show of 95 and must be owned. Your lives are not complete without it in your collection. The sound quality is tasty. The show itself just shreds. I even go so far as to nominate this as a Dick's Picks or a Vault release. And this recommendation comes from a guy who WAY prefers 60s/70s Dead to almost anything from the 80s or 90s. Ya just got to trust me on this one.

i look back at this show with alot of LOVE and grateful feelings. we all now how summer 95 went down, i try to remember all the sunny days not the drama. i went to this run of show and got in all 3 nights. BRUCE was a big treat, with him sitting in, the boys found some of that good ole grateful dead magic! all 3 nights were fun but this is by far the one. the unbroken>scarlet>fire....need i say more!
take all you got just to stay on your feet! even with some fumbles on the words this show is one to get. listening to it now still gives me goose bumbs. the fire goes to the point of being lost and brings you home again, jerry was on for this jam! THANK YOU BOYS, FOR A REAL GOOD TIME!

One of the better shows of spring 95. Although the sound is pretty darn good, Hornsby is pretty far back in the mix, and as one previous reviewer mentioned, the drums are mixed a little hot for my taste. I am not a big Wang Dang fan, but I love Garcia's harmony parts, even though that vocal sound is basically the result of lots of smoking of cigarettes and other things.

I don't think Jerry's playing is very strong here even with the addition of Mr. Hornsby. Although I do think the Fire gets going better than most anything from 95.

This was the best '95 show I saw or have heard. The ENTIRE second set should be enshrined in the Smithsonian Institute in DC. I spoke with Dennis McNally after the 3-19 Philly show and begged him to get them to play Unbroken in Charlotte. He paused when I asked him, and said, "Well, you never know." The place erupted during Unbroken...so much so that I thought the place was gonna crash down. I have to thank Hornsby for helping to pump up the band a bit on this night.

We all know that the '95 shows were hurting, to say the least. However, the addition of Bruce spices things up and appears to invigorate Jerry. Really, I think it sounds like many of the '91 shows. Plus, the UC I'm sure was nice for those in attendance. (Still, there is room for improvement, but cool nonetheless.) Good recording, and like I say, the quality was not too shabby. If your looking to download a couple shows from 1995, your crazy anyways, but this one is one I would actually recomend to people.

we all know how badly ol' Jerry was struggling in 95 and there are some brutal shows because of it. not this one. Bruce had shown up and this clearly energized J.G., and he was able to dig down and shine once more. just listen to So Many Roads and check the passion. just listen to Scarlet (even with massacred lyrics) >Fire>Corrina>Mathilda and check the bright playing he displays (particularly Fire which soars and soars). unfortunetly this sounboard is mixed sort of strange and someone's drums are way high, intruding over everything else way too often... nonetheless.... go to the other source... way better

This is not a bad show as far as '95 is concerned. Bruce Hornsby sitting in on grand piano adds a nice touch, and the band (as well as the fans - "bruuuuuuuce") are pleased to have him there. Musically this show is one of my favourite latterday Dead shows, the second set getting a little weirder than usual. However, I have to agree with other reviewers that this recording is mixed funny, having some cymbals quite high in the mix throughout (maybe it was Mickey's feed or something). The first few notes of Unbroken Chain are also missing, which is a shame because it is a good solid rendition otherwise. The audience copy I owned prior to this did better justice to a smokin' show, but it is still great to hear it once again. It would still be nice to see the AUD version listed on here, or even a better SBD. Nice show, worth downloading.

This show, warts and all, was one of the few bright spots for me in '95. As the other reviewers maintain; The energy in the building on this night was an incredible rush. However,this soundboard recording falls flat and does no justice to that effect. Would someone kindly post a good quality audience recording of this show so myself and others can once again hear the roar of the crowd. Thank you. (Four stars for my memory of the evening, ONE star for this recording)

First off, I'm grading this one on a curve. This is easily one of the best shows of 1995, so I gave it a 5. Bruce Hornsby sits in on grand piano and brings incredible energy to the band. Second set opens with the second ever Unbroken Chain followed by a blazing Scarlet > Fire. The highlight of the show comes as the rest of the band leaves the stage for Drums, and Hornsby remains at the keys for an extended Matilda jam with the drummers.

That said, this is not a great recording. It has a cassette generation, and the levels were set too high somewhere along the way, so there is distortion present at times.